This Time Tomorrow

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of illness or death.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What aspects of the time travel premise in This Time Tomorrow felt most convincing or emotionally resonant to you?

2. Emma Straub’s previous novel, All Adults Here, also explored complex family dynamics and parental relationships. If you’ve read both, how does her treatment of the parent-child bond differ when enhanced by the supernatural element of time travel?

3. Which character transformation surprised you most as Alice moved between her 16-year-old and 40-year-old selves?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. If you could revisit your 16-year-old self with your current knowledge, what single action would you take that might meaningfully change your trajectory?

2. Alice discovers that despite her time-travel interventions, some things remain constant. What parts of your own personality do you believe would remain unchanged regardless of different life decisions?

3. When have you experienced the tension between wanting to change something significant in your past versus accepting your life as it has unfolded?

4. Leonard’s fear prevents him from publishing another novel despite his talent. When have you allowed fear to limit your potential?

5. The novel concludes with Alice embracing her future rather than trying to fix her past. Describe a moment when you chose to move forward instead of dwelling on what could have been.

6. How has your definition of a fulfilling life changed as you’ve gotten older?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The novel contrasts New York City in 1996 with the present day. What cultural or societal shifts between these periods are most significant to Alice’s story?

2. What message does the novel convey about societal expectations regarding marriage, children, and career success for women approaching middle age?

3. Consider how Straub portrays mortality and end-of-life care through Leonard’s illness. What does this reveal about our cultural approach to death and dying?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. What symbolic significance does Pomander Walk hold beyond being a physical portal for time travel?

2. The title This Time Tomorrow evokes both hope and resignation. Examine how this duality plays out through the novel’s central conflicts.

3. Leonard’s books, Time Brothers and Dawn of Time, mirror the experiences of the Stern family. What does this literary device reveal about the father-daughter relationship that direct narration cannot?

4. How does Alice’s perception of her teenage self change through her repeated visits to age 16.

5. In what ways does Straub use Alice’s different career trajectories across timelines to comment on the value of fulfillment versus conventional success?

6. Throughout the novel, Alice must decide whether to continue time traveling or accept reality. Discuss how this tension reflects broader human struggles with acceptance versus intervention.

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Design a one-day itinerary for Alice and Leonard that would capture everything important about their relationship if they knew it was their last day together.

2. Imagine you’re writing the dust jacket description for Leonard’s second novel, Dawn of Time, about a teenage girl who time travels. What would this fictional book’s synopsis emphasize?

3. If you could add one more time travel journey for Alice beyond what appears in the novel, what age and moment would you send her to, and why?

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